Fire Proof
by Lee Bledsaw
Summary: Technocrats aren't supposed to work with Mages, but now the situation is desperate
1. Default Chapter

Agent Melonie Rue, a tall blonde woman with silver-gray eyes, could not remember the last time she had felt nervous as she adjusted the skirt of her baby blue suit for the fifth time. The butterflies in her stomach had somehow armed themselves with stone hatchets and were proceeding to lay siege to the inner lining. The woman tried to breathe as she paced back and forth in the small waiting room, the heels of her baby blue stiletto shoes clicking. To most, the room might have seemed more like a prison cell since it was completely white washed with no pictures, no furniture, or even a half dead fern, but to the Technocrat, it was normal. She doubted anyone in Psych Ops had much of a personality; interior decorating would not be one of their skills. Besides, the white would stop other thoughts and worries from slipping into her mind while she waited to be evaluated: some kind of reminder of Room 101. Rue could almost kick herself for mentioning the dream she had seen two nights ago. Closing her eyes with a sigh, she could still recall every detail of it.  
  
Fire, she had hated it since she was a child. She had watched her apartment burn to the ground without reason; since she had listened as her little brother had burned to death. His pre-pubescent screams still haunted her. Now fire surrounded her and even her extensive training could not stop the flames from compromising her mission.  
"Rue!" One of her associates, a man by the name of Lexx, shouted to her through the flames. Rue could not reply, the fire was going to get to her hair, to her clothes, it would crisp her skin and she would die with the scent of her own flesh shoved up her nose. Lexx jumped through the flames and grabbed her. "Rue!" he screamed, smacking her across the face to break her trance.  
And then the world exploded. Lexx and Rue were sent flying through the air as flames, smoke, and debris swirled around them like a hellish tornado. For a moment Rue saw the stars through the roof of the warehouse building and the soft light of the moon. She reached for it dumbly, as if she could grab a star to hold on to. Instead, she and Lexx fell into the inferno below them. Lexx pulled her close, and she clung to him as they fell.  
  
Rue shook her head violently. She would have plenty of time to discuss the dream in a few minutes. Agent Simon Lexx was the reason she was in this room in the first place. She had told him, thinking that talking about the dream would make her feel better about it; instead it had made Lexx worry. Her fear of fire was something from her old life, something she should have forgotten when she became Enlightened. It did not matter what the dream was truly about, the fact she still feared it was a cause for concern. Her Conditioning might be coming undone and that was simply something that could not happen.  
Rue jumped slightly as the far door opened and Lexx emerged. He wore his mirror shades, which made it impossible to tell what he was feeling. His dark brown hair was cut short on the sides and back, spiking slightly at the top. When he had first come to the New World Order, he had been highlighted blond, but had soon dropped the habit. There were more important things to worry about with Reality Deviants running around. His square jaw was firm and his Greek perfection lips were passive. His suit was cut perfectly to accent broad shoulders and a narrow waist. He walked to Rue as if he had learned to walk from a hunting cat.  
"They're ready for you," he told her. She looked at him. Rue had thought it best to keep her mirror shades off, but now she was reconsidering.  
"I guess it's pointless to ask what you told them."  
"You already know. Go on, Rue. I'll be waiting for you when you get out." He touched her shoulder.  
"Agent Rue," an Asian woman in a black pant suit snapped from the door. Rue nodded to Lexx and approached the woman.  
"Agent Rue, reporting," she said dryly. The woman led her into a more comfortable looking room. It hosted a black leather couch and chair with a stainless steel and glass coffee table in between them. Beyond that, a stainless steel desk with a second black leather chair. A few paintings hung in the room, but they were black and white and post modern and Rue had always had a taste for landscape photos.  
"Agent Rue, I am Dr. Yuni. Do you know why you're here?" Dr. Yuni sat in the chair, gesturing Rue to sit on the couch, which the agent happily did.  
"Agent Lexx was concerned about a dream I had a few nights ago."  
"That's correct. Agent Lexx is concerned that your childhood fear of fire will affect your field work. I don't have to explain to you why this is such a concern."  
"He's suggesting I need to go back to Conditioning?"  
"Right now that's not your concern. The fear of fire is actually human, and there are some things that even Room 101 can't fix. That is what I am here to do. Right now, I am not recommending you go back to Conditioning and that's all you need to worry yourself with. I would, however, like to have a talk with you." Rue wondered if she could actually say no. "Would you like to tell me when you started having your fear of fire?"  
"It was when I was still in grade school and still on the Front Lines. A fire broke out in our apartment building. My younger brother and I got separated in the chaos and the smoke. I managed to escape into the hallway and the firemen carried me out, but they never found my brother. They think he had tried to escape out of the bedroom window, but had gotten trapped. I've been afraid of it ever since. I can't even get near a candle without getting nervous."  
"Interesting," Dr. Yuni made a few notes. "Was this addressed in you Conditioning."  
"Briefly. It was explained to me that some Devients can throw fire. It was assumed that I would learn to keep my head through experience."  
"And have you?"  
"I have not encountered fire on the field yet. Most of my work so far has been simply research."  
"I see. And you have not taken it upon yourself to rid yourself of this fear?"  
"I don't know how, I thought I would grow out of it."  
"For most people, this would be forgivable, but you are not most people. You are an agent of the Ivory Tower and must be stronger, better, faster."  
"And that, gentleman is the goal. We have the technology!" Rue said, dropping her voice to sound slightly masculine. Dr. Yuni, if the joke was received, made no mention of humor.  
"That is what I get paid to do. Right now I do not see a need for sending you back through Conditioning, they did not address the fear there and they will not again. Rather I would like you to report here weekly to work on this fear. We will start simply and work on ridding you of the fear or at least stopping it from paralyzing you."  
"Does that mean what I think it does?"  
"What do you think it means?" Dr. Yuni asked calmly, her dark eyes meeting Rue's gray eyes calmly.  
"I think it means you're going to put me in a room full of candles and watch me panic." Dr. Yuni nodded.  
"We'll start slow, one or two candles in front of you. It will teach you to get used to being around fire." Dr. Ynui made a note before going to her desk. "You are free to go." Rue suddenly found she had mysteriously lost her patellae. She remained frozen on the couch as Dr. Yuni raised a brow.  
"The simple thought scares you?"  
"I'll be all right. I have to get over this fear, don't I?" Shakily, Rue stood and left the room. Lexx, as he had promised, was waiting for her in the blank room.  
"Well?" He asked, his voice was concerned.  
"She wants me to come back once a week. She's going to have me spend time around candles to try and get me used to fire. She thinks it will break my fear."  
"You don't look so sure."  
"Does it matter? I'm not the one that was hired for my knowledge of the mind." Lexx hugged her gently.  
"Want to head home?" he asked gently.  
"Please." Lexx stroked her blonde hair gently and lead her out of the room.  
The Psych Ops wing had been set apart from the rest of the P.R.E Complex (Paranormal Restriction and Elimination to other Technocrats and Plastic Renovations and Expansions to the outside world), which itself was relatively hidden by the soaring peaks of the Rocky Mountains. A gardened brick path was bathed in sunlight and the day was perfect outside. It was a pity that most of the agents that swarmed the complex were inside, looking for Reality Deviants who had not managed to rid the world of themselves. The sun soothed Rue's nerves, or maybe it was the fact that Lexx was beside her. She was not afraid to admit that she had feelings for Lexx: in fact the two of them shared their feelings frequently in private. The head of their team, Agent Greg Jynx, had made clear that he was not accepting of the idea of inter-office relationships, which made the relationship dangerous. There were rumors that he was simply bitter and that a woman he had cared for had been a Deviant and Jynx had been forced to destroy her.  
No one was brave enough to ask him.  
Rue suspected that Lexx wished they could announce the relationship, but both of them put the mission before their personal lives. Together they entered the main building of the complex, working their way to the exit across the marble floor of the main level. Upstairs the other agents and technocrats would be working on locating Deviants or creating clones, or messing with accounts, or any other number of things that Rue was not interested in thinking about. She, Lexx, Jynx, and the two remaining members of her group had just gotten back from a mission, and she was more than ready to relax in her apartment with a beer and romantic comedy. Control help Jynx if he thought for one minute she would rush to give him her oral report.  
"Lexx! Rue! Wait up!"  
Both agents froze and suppressed groans. The newest member of their team, Agent Darrel Wulf, was jogging towards them, black hair tied back in a ponytail. Wulf had not, like Rue or Lexx, been pulled from the Front Lines. He was a restored Deviant. He had once been a member of the Virtual Adapts, but a run-in with Jynx, Rue, Lexx, Smith, and Augustis had made him realize that the way for him to get ahead in the world would be to join the defenders of reality. It had been when Smith had died in the field that Wulf had gotten assigned to Jynx's team. Already he was a burr to Rue, the only female member of Jynx's team.  
"Hello, Agent Wulf," Lexx said formally. Wulf nodded to him and looked at Rue.  
"Hello," she said blandly.  
"Where are you two off to?" he asked. Rue glanced at Lexx, who still wore his mirror shades. It was impossible to tell what he had planned, but from experience and his body language, Rue could tell he had not planned for others to be involved.  
"Just back to relax and enjoy the luxuries of the P.R.E. housing," Rue answered. Wulf laughed too much at the bad joke. While the Complex did provide housing to the Techs on it, the housing was only a few steps above college dormitories. They were one room apartments with the kitchen, living room, and bedroom sharing one general area. The only privacy in the rooms was the bathrooms which, to Rue's happiness, since she still enjoyed practices like make-up and home facials and curling her hair, were private. There were narrow windows that sometimes had a good view and sometimes did not which did not have blinds or curtains. Rue, having grown up in crowded Boston, did not complain about the housing, but she heard others like Wulf express frustration.  
"Mind if I join you? I just got out of a meeting with Jynx, and I could use a drink!" Lexx shrugged,  
"All I've got is cheap stuff at my place."  
"I haven't had a chance to do shopping since we got back. I think I have a mouthful of cranberry juice and that's it," Rue added.  
"Well Lexx," Wulf clapped him on the shoulder. "You seem to be a generous host." Rue could not help but laugh at Lexx's flinch.  
  
"Beer me!" Wulf cried out as he jumped over the top of Lexx's black futon and sprawled across the seat. Rue smiled encouragingly to Lexx as he removed his glasses. She stopped to admire his crystal blue gaze before helping him get beer and the few snacks he had. The kitchens of P.R.E housing were little more than aisles with stove and microwave above each other, a sink, a drying rack, and a refrigerator that was too large to be called a mini-fridge, but too small to be considered normal size. The rest was left to counters and cupboards. Lexx and Rue "accidentally" bumped into each other often in the scramble to get beers out and along with whatever random snack foods Lexx had around.  
Wulf moved his legs only to let Rue sit next to him as she sat on the floor rug and handed him a beer. He took a swig and cringed,  
"You weren't kidding. Cheap, cheap, cheap."  
"You don't like it, go drink your own stuff," Lexx replied, sitting in the recently vacated spot. There was a moment of tense silence.  
"So what is Jynx's deal?" Wulf asked. Lexx and Rue met eyes and Rue nodded.  
"No on knows," she said softly. "There are rumors that before he was transferred here, he fell hard for a woman who turned out to be a reality deviant. The story splits here. Some say she rejected him, others that he had to destroy her, or he tried to get her into Conditioning and she failed. I've heard a few say she's still alive and well, and while she didn't reject Jynx, she moved on and he hasn't."  
"Deep," Wulf said. "So does that happen often? Relationships between deviant and Tech?"  
"Rarely, actually, and it's not allowed either. The woman Jynx fell for should have been one of ours. She held a PhD, was a logical thinker, so on, so forth. Jynx met her on accident when she was transferred for a teaching job to the town he was in." Lexx replied.  
"Weird. I hated my teachers in school."  
"I can guess," Rue and Lexx said together. There was another uncomfortable silence and then Wulf cleared his throat.  
"Well, um, thanks for the drink, Lexx. I'll see you both later."  
"That's 'be seein' you'!" they shouted together as Wulf shut the door. The moment the door was closed; Lexx and Rue were in each other's arms, their lips meeting passionately for a moment before they broke, their foreheads resting together.  
"Thank God he's gone," Lexx whispered, stealing another kiss. Rue nodded before she joined Lexx on the futon. Lexx's hands removed the blazer in a few swift movements. The thin material of her blouse did not stop the heat from his hands from reaching her back. She could taste the beer in his kiss, but it was pleasant to her. His lips moved from her lips to her neck hungrily, sucking just slightly. Rue closed her eyes as her fingers ran through his hair, enjoying the feeling of the gelled tips tickling her palm. Her nails dragged along his scalp and Lexx reacted by holding her closer. Tingles shot like electric up her spine as he did and her insides melted. Lexx kissed up her neck and along her jaw to her ear, his warm breath tickling her ear. He held her close enough that Rue could not tell which heart was beating faster, hers or his. "So beautiful," he whispered to her. Rue smiled warmly,  
"It's so wonderful to hear you say that." She kissed him and he let his fingers tangle themselves in her hair.  
"There's so much I want to tell you, Melonie." His beautiful blue gaze met hers and she was stunned by the intensity in them. The look was not wolfish, but there was a passion there that could not be denied. "I want to do so much with you-hell for you." Rue raised a brow and kissed him again, just briefly.  
"What are you talking about?" She asked, letting her lips roam over his face and neck.  
"There's this little cove near San Francisco," he explained. "The sunsets there are breath taking. I want to take you there, let you see the sunset and the waterfall and the whales." His hands slid over her hips, clawing slightly for just a hint of what was on his mind, but his eyes remained on hers. "Take you there besides a little, controlled, campfire." Rue's smile stayed on her lips, but left her eyes.  
"You had to bring up fire now?" Lexx grinned and licked her lower lip.  
"I happen to be an excellent eagle scout, I'll have you know."  
"Then let me see your merit badges," Rue giggled before pulling him in for another kiss, just as her cellular phone rang. With a groan, she grabbed the discarded blazer and drew the phone from an inner pocket.  
"Rue," she answered simply. No one called her on the phone but her fellow team members.  
"Where are you?" Jynx, the man had perfect timing, or the worst, depending on how one looked at the situation. Rue rolled her eyes, but kept her tone even.  
"I just returned from Psych Ops."  
"That was fifteen minutes ago, Rue. Where is your report? Where are you to report in?"  
"I am home." She hated lying, but telling him where she was would raise too many questions.  
"I expect you here in five minutes or my directors will be angry, and you don't want that anymore than I do."  
"Five minutes," Rue confirmed and hung up with an apologetic look to Lexx.  
"That bastard," Lexx growled. "Will you come back tonight?"  
"Yes," she replied, dressing and pulling her hair back in a ponytail. She gave him one last kiss before leaving with a regretful sigh. 


	2. The Director

Jynx's office was one of the few that had a gorgeous view of the Rocky Mountains. Before anyone would get in the office, Rue had been known to sneak in to watch the early morning mountain life. Greg Jynx, however, did not seem like the type of man that would truly appreciate such a view and so Rue was pleasantly surprised to find the blinds open behind him.  
Jynx was a no-nonsense man. He wore custom tailored suits, silk ties, and perfectly starched shirts. He wore gray today, he wore gray everyday because of his status with the Technocracy, and his mirror shades were not far from his hands. Were it not for the fact that his shirt was white, Rue would have made a Regis comment, which likely would have been missed by Jynx. The best thing about the leader of the team was that he had the ability to be almost invisible in a crowd, the only thing standing out was his hair. The man was blonde, like Rue, but Jynx's blond was almost platinum, the kind of hair that would be pink for a week after using cheap drugstore one-time hair dye. His brown eyes were darker than chocolate, and all emotion seemed to be swallowed by the coffee recesses. Rue hoped that her slightly rumpled appearance would be associated to the fact she was two minutes early as she opened the mahogany door.  
Like Dr. Yuni's office, the director's was contemporary with stainless steel, glass, and black leather. The most prominent feature of the room was his large glass and stainless steel desk, on which sat manila folders and legal folders, and little else outside the few sleek black P.R.E. pens. Jynx seemed to sit in his rolling leather chair, starring at the middle of his desk with his hands making nervous twitching motions seemingly randomly. The truth was that Jynx's company computer had been built into his desk. The monitor was flat and under the glass, the keyboard programmed into the desk's top. A small projector positioned on the corner of the desk was meant to project the computer images onto the blank white wall to Rue's left. The blank wall was a screen and nearby sat a black leather couch, a love seat, and a glass and stainless steel coffee table. It was this corner of the office that the team would meet in to locate and target dangerous Reality Deviants.  
"Sir?" Rue asked, approaching the desk. Jynx glanced up briefly,  
"Early, as usual. Something I've always noted on your company reports." Rue said nothing as she stood in front of the desk, hands clasped professionally in front of her. Jynx finished whatever he was doing and then leaned back in his chair, looking at Rue as he balanced his fingers on each other in a triangle shape.  
"Blue?" He asked, raising a brow. "Not exactly company standards, is it?"  
"No, sir." Jynx sighed and waved his hands as if brushing away obnoxious insects.  
"If there is a Technocrat who can dress outside the standards, it is you, Rue." The woman raised her brow, unsure of how to reply. Jynx spared her the need to say anything. "Your written report was excellent, as always. I could almost hear you reading it to me as I read it. That was pleasant, to say the least." He smiled at her and Rue swallowed the urge to fidget.  
"Then why was I asked to give an oral report on the mission?"  
"Would you believe it is because I like the sound of your voice?" Jynx laughed briefly. "Actually, I understand you were in Psych Ops today."  
"Yes sir," she replied.  
"Is everything all right?"  
"I had been having dreams, sir. They've been concerning fire, which is a paralyzing fear of mine since I was a child." Something on Jynx's face hardened.  
"Fear of fire is a healthy one for the Front Lines."  
"Which is why I was sent to Psych Ops, since I am no longer part of the Front Lines, but a defender. Dr. Yuni plans on getting me used to being around fire to help me get over my fear."  
"Sounds like I should buy you candles, Rue." Jynx paused, as if considering something to say, but then changing his mind. "I am pleased that you went to Psych Ops after these dreams."  
"Actually, Agent Lexx took the initiative and scheduled me to go." Jynx looked at her with a raised brow.  
"You trusted Lexx with this information?"  
"Lexx and I have come to trust each other, sir."  
"I'm sorry to hear that, Melonie." Rue almost jumped at hearing her first name out of her director's lips.  
"Sir?"  
"Greg, please. Lexx was supposed to become director before I was transferred here. This, of course, was before you came along. In any case, Lexx has been searching for a way to undermine me ever since. I would hate for someone," Jynx cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. "Well, for someone like you to get caught in the middle of a power struggle. Believe you me, you will be a director before Lexx will be."  
"Someone like me, Greg?"  
"Well, you know, someone with such skill and, um, maturity." Rue decided not to press the point, and waited for Jynx to continue. "In any case, I would have to suggest caution of your part with Lexx."  
"Are you saying he is not trustworthy?"  
"He can be trusted," Jynx admitted. "But I suggest you go to Psych Ops alone, and enjoy the fact that they are confidential."  
"Then how did you know about it?" Jynx smiled.  
"Well, I am your director. Let me see you out, I was just going home. Maybe, if it's all right with you, I could walk you home?"  
"Um, I suppose so." Jynx paused only to grab a file and turn off the desk computer before getting the door for her. "Thanks, she said, pausing as he locked the door behind him.  
"The pleasure is all mine. I'm actually rather glad that you were the last one to report, give me time to talk to you more."  
"Oh, well should I just be the last one every time?" Rue could almost hit herself as she spoke, she was very close to flirting with her director!  
"If you would like." Jynx handed her a file. "In there is some information on a target a group of RD's are considering."  
"I take it you would like me locate security precaution options, back up locations, and the optimal opportunities to apprehend the suspected RD's?" Rue responded as she took the folder.  
"I would, actually. Since you won't be there to advise the team as you normally are, I think it would be best if you came up with a mission plan before we left." Rue stopped as Jynx pressed the down button on the elevator.  
"Why would I not be going with you?" She asked, confused. Jynx gestured for her to enter the elevator first. Rue was too distracted to notice the sudden blush on her director's cheeks and the straying of his eyes to her skirt as he entered behind her.  
"These are some of our most dangerous RD's, and they may have expanded to include particular deviants who can well, play with fire. Considering your fear and the fact that there is no certain time as to when you will complete the operation to rid yourself of it, I don't think it's a good idea to force you into the mission. You will be in constant contact with us, of course, but will be safe here." He gestured for her to go first as the elevator took them to the main level. Rue swallowed her temper as best she could and tried to speak evenly.  
"Greg, I have to disagree with you there. I think I would be able to handle the mission, even if there is fire involved. I was trained well and I have been assigned to a tough team for a reason. I would like to accompany this mission."  
"Commendable, Melonie," Jynx replied as he held the door open for her to cross the bricked path to the housing. "But I will have to wait for reports from Dr. Yuni to see if I agree with you. Believe you me, this is not something I would look forward to doing without you, but if it means that you will be more fit on other missions, I will take the risk."  
"Greg, you're not listening to me, I can handle the mission! I know I can! If you would just let me prove it-"  
"And how would you prove that you are ready for such a mission? I'm sorry, Melonie, it hurts me to tell you this, but as of right now, you are not on this mission's roster. End of discussion." Rue pursed her lips and sighed.  
"Understood, sir. I'll read this over and begin work on it first thing in the morning." With that Rue turned on her heel and entered housing alone, her fist clenched at her side as she made her way to Lexx's apartment. Before she could knock, he had wrenched the door open.  
"I saw you," his voice was almost a growl. Rue scowled.  
"What are you talking about?"  
"I saw you with him, with Jynx!" Rue rolled her eyes.  
"He offered to walk me home and he gave me an assignment, Simon, that was all! Are you going to let me in, or are you going to keep screaming at me in the hallway?" Lexx growled and moved to let her in. Rue entered and looked at her lover evenly,  
"I promise you, there was nothing." She watched as Lexx grabbed his mirror shades, and her calm broke. "Don't you dare!" she hissed, grabbing the glasses off his face. "You are not going to use the mind effects on me, Simon, I am telling the truth!"  
"Jynx requested you personally when you were stationed out in Boston, you know that? He had never heard anything of you except for the standard report, but he said that you would be great on his team."  
"Yes, because I have an understanding of security systems and logistics, Simon. Why do you think I am always the first one to get the assignments? Because I plan the strategies, that's why and you know it!"  
"Really? Or is it because you're cheating on me with him?"  
"You are so ridiculous!" Rue screeched. "You know that I am not fond of Jynx, and that I consider him a tight fisted dick that could use a good hooker. Why the hell would I choose him over you? You know what, I don't care anymore, Simon. I was just told that I might not be able to go on this next mission because of the possible deviants involved, I'm going to have to sit in a room of candles once a week because of this fear of fire, and on top of all that, you're accusing me of sleeping with our director! You know what, you can sleep alone tonight, and for the rest of your nights here for all I care." Without waiting for him to reply, she left, slamming the door behind her.  
  
It had been nearly two weeks since she had seen her apartment. She had almost forgotten how much cleaner it was in comparison to Lexx's. Rather then a futon, which would serve as both couch and bed, the woman had gone with a real mattress, which she set on her floor in a corner of the room. She had sacrificed having a real living room to have a library, consisting mostly of analyses of wars as recent as Iraq to as ancient as Mesopotamia. Strategy has always fascinated Rue, who completed the library with a desk and filing cabinet of top secret bases and forts of most countries, and the flaws in the security. There were few places Rue could not get in. Two tall chairs were pushed up to her kitchen counter to serve as a breakfast bar. Pushed off to one side was a collection of bean bag chairs for use when the rest of the team was over.  
Rue shut and locked her door behind her, tears trickling down her cheeks and cutting scars in her make-up. She set the file on her desk, covering the layout of Area 51, and changed from her suit to a loose white tank top and gray shorts that read "princess" on the back. She had owned this outfit since high school, but it still fit her so she saw no reason to change.  
"Men," she said to her reflection. Leaving her bathroom, Rue poured herself a drink from a hidden stash of vodka and sat down at her desk, opening the file folder. Before her sat five pictures of the supposed reality deviants which would quickly become her targets. Each had a short profile to go with them. Rue, not being interested in the names of the people she would send her fellow members to kill, skipped reading the names and jumped to the section entitled "Records" on the first one.  
  
Deviant has become a dread to the Technocrats in the PRISM. Deviant has been associated with the twice burning of Springfield, association with fellow deviant "Ebon Phoenix". Possibly a Maruader. Orders suggested: kill.  
  
There followed a more complete list of the crimes and half way through, Rue was forced to push it away. It was a wonder this deviant had not wiped himself out of reality years ago. Being a Virtual Adapt, however, he had probably programmed himself back in. The remaining four were not nearly as frightening, with the exception of the mentioned Ebon Phoenix, and a woman whose kill count was enough to make any Technocrat nervous. Oddly enough, there was a sixth profile, or the last page of one, but no picture or first page was with it.  
  
Threat level moderate, but proceed with caution. Skills are unknown.  
  
And nothing more.  
Scowling, Rue went back looking for a missing profile page, but could not find one. It was not like Jynx to have left out a deviant, but there was a first time for everything. She would bring it up to him tomorrow. The woman was pulling out the mission statement when there was a knock on her door. With a sigh, she stood and went to the door, opening it as far as the chain would allow.  
Lexx stood on the other side.  
"Melonie, please, don't slam the door in my face! I know I deserve it after what I said-"  
"You're right," Rue replied and shut the door, turning and leaning against it.  
"Oh Melonie, come on, please! I was an idiot, I know. And you have every right to be mad at me, but won't you listen?"  
"Why? So you can accuse me of cheating again?"  
"I got upset seeing you out there with Jynx. You're beautiful, Melonie Rue, and anyone would get nervous seeing you with someone else. Please, let me come in? We have to be able to work this out." Rue unbolted the door and opened it, walking back to her desk. Lexx entered, shutting and locking the door behind him. Rue crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked at him with the coldest glare she could muster. Lexx was still in his suit, although his hair was rumpled. His eyes were slightly blood shot and it looked as if he had been crying as well.  
"Well? Explain yourself."  
"My room has a view of the courtyard too, and I was watching for you to come back. I had this nice dinner planned for you and everything. Then I looked out and saw you talking to Jynx, and I lost it. I don't know why I thought you would do anything with him, but he obviously likes you, and that worries me. Please, please forgive me." Lexx had made his way over to her and knelt as he asked for forgiveness.  
"That hurt, Simon, to hear you accusing me like that for talking to someone else. I've never been a fan of those relationships and I'm not going to start to keep you around."  
"I know, and I'm not really that kind of guy, you just make me so nervous." His fingers began to slid up her bare legs. "You're beautiful, and smart, and funny. Any man here would trip over themselves to have ten minutes alone with you. You are amazing and I'd never want to try and keep you in a little cage. I promise." Rue looked at him, trying to ignore her body's familiar reaction to his touch.  
"If you accuse me of cheating again, it will be the end of it. Understand?"  
"Yes, yes I do. Thank you, Melonie." Lexx took her hands and kissed the palms. "Thank you." Lexx pulled her out of her chair and onto the floor with him as he kissed her lips with paralyzing force. Rue fought a little at first, she had work to do after all, but as Lexx's hand slid up her shirt, she forgot her complaints and kissed back.  
  
"What did you mean when you said you might not be able to join the mission?" Lexx asked as he held her close. Rue could feel his heartbeat slowing down against her back and he was a wonderful substitute for a blanket on the cold floor of her room. Rue opened her eyes and sighed.  
"Jynx doesn't think it would be smart of me to tag along. He says the deviants this time are more dangerous and fire will most likely be involved. I'm supposed to plan the strategies and then listen for feedback."  
"I think that would be better, then you would be ready for the next mission. Besides," he kissed her ear. "I like the idea of you waiting eagerly for your man to come home." Rue rolled her eyes.  
"Simon, don't."  
"Why not? Why don't you want to talk about it, Melonie? What scares you about us?"  
"I said I don't want to talk about it, Simon." she moved to get up, but his arm tightened around her.  
"All right, all right. I won't say it again, don't leave me like this, Melonie. You're really warm." The woman settled down next to him again and forgot about work for the remainder of the night. 


	3. Ol' Chrome Arm

Dr. Etaine MacCul, PhD. in anthropology with a focus on mythology shut down her office computer with a grateful sigh. She had a stack of quizzes to grade, her cat was probably hungry, and Etaine was getting a headache. She picked up her bag, only to hear her computer turn itself on again.  
"Oh no," she groaned and looked at the screen reluctantly, tossing a mess of auburn curls out of her pale blue eyes. Across it scrolled the last thing she wanted to see: "Tribunal tonight, Wayside".  
"Why tonight?" she asked the air.  
"Because we've got a mission," replied the man in her doorway. Etaine glanced at him and rolled her eyes. He had bright cherry red hair that stuck straight up, and for once looked as if he was trying to look like he fit in. Instead of his normal day-glo pants and t-shirt, he was dressed in bright red leather pants and a jacket.  
"Katrina dress you again, DropOff?" Etaine asked, looking at his clothes. DropOff grinned slightly. Katrina, a Verbena dancer at the Wayside Cathedral, was his on again, off again girlfriend. Apparently they had gotten back together for a brief time before she danced too close to someone again, or he decided to hide in the Void again.  
"Would you like to undo it?"  
"Not really. Are you here to make sure I show up to this one?" Etaine, naturally a shy woman, was known to avoid the rest of Mage society unless pulled there by the hair. Unknown to Etaine, many Mages thought it was a shame she was so likely to hide, not only because she was a skilled Hermetic, but because she was also beautiful.  
"Something like that."  
"I already have a car, DropOff."  
"I know Etaine; I'm here for another reason. This mission is my own idea, but I'll need some help."  
"Oh really?" Etaine sat at her desk again, turning off her monitor to ignore the scrolling message.  
"Honestly, there are a million other candidates I could have asked, but since I find you so incredibly fascinating, and I've heard good things from my close colleagues, I decided to pick you. Do you remember a place called BioForge?" he asked removing his cherry red glasses. His steel blue eyes were intense, and for a moment Etaine found it a pity that the Virtual Adepts were so cocky. Particularly DropOff, if he wasn't so damnably arrogant all the time he might be a very likable person.  
"Vaguely. It's head office is in Germany and they're only recently coming into America. Their stock is amazing and anyone who owns some in it is a millionaire over night. That's the view of most people. As for how We view it, well it's probably Tech run, most likely used for cloning. It's almost something that you would rather sic Garou on then do yourself. Tell them it's in association with Pentex." DropOff grinned to himself.  
"On top of things, just like Teke and Belle said you would be. They recommended you to me because you spent eight years in Europe. I assume you speak German?"  
"Fluently, as with French and Irish, why?" Like most of the Order of Hermes, Etaine was a bit of a snob, considering most of the other Traditions too weak or too self-righteous to be of much use. She had relaxed that policy after a slip of a Hermetic overran Springfield with zombies not more than a few months ago, but many of those thoughts still remained with her.  
"I assume you have contacts there?"  
"Not really in Germany, but yes, I have some contacts."  
"Then I'd like you to come with us. Belle seems to think you'd be good for this type of thing, and on missions like this, I trust Belle."  
"What exactly am I doing?"  
"You? Well your individual part in this isn't completely worked out. I'm certain that given enough 'private time' I could go through my briefs and come up with something. However, that would take way too long, and since we don't have all night I'll give you the mini version of what WE will be doing. We are going to make it a smoldering pile of leftover techie fortress with a little bit of retribution on the side." She blankly stared at him, like one who wonders what language the other is speaking. "We're going to destroy it." He said calmly "Guess I'll see you there." Without saying anything else he left and Etaine's computer shut off  
"Goodbye!" it said.  
"Adepts," she grumbled, grabbing her things and leaving after locking her office. She made her way to her black Cavalier and got in, removing the silk glove on her right hand. She flexed the fingers, which looked as if they were made of chrome--just like the rest of her right arm to the elbow. A spell had worked too well during the zombie incident and Reality had punished Etaine by giving her a chrome arm. She could still use it as if it was still flesh, but she always wore a glove on it in public. Most students thought she was just eccentric.  
Shaking off her sudden moodiness, she started her car and drove to the Wayside Cathedral. In southern Springfield, many of the buildings were abandoned or undergoing renovation. To Etaine, it still seemed so desolate. The Wayside was another abandoned building, but on the outside it seemed as if someone was taking care of it since the roof was intact, at first glance, and the stained glass windows were not all broken. Of course, the top of the cathedral sported two crosses, one on the right, one in the middle, and a stump of a third. An abandoned cathedral by day, a Magus nightclub when the sun went down.  
As she had expected, there were already people gathering for the tribunal. She recognized a few cars and parked, leaving her bag and glove in the car. She paused only to leave her black blazer in the car as well. Dressed in her black mini and a forest green silk shirt, no one would mistake her for a Tech, which had happened the first time she had met a few Mages. It was not her fault business dress matched the New World Order's dress code.  
The Hermetic entered the abandoned cathedral which hosted the Wayside and was immediately greeted by a ravishing woman with long black hair.  
"Etaine!" Belle Flower greeted her. "DropOff just told me. Good for you to get out once and a while. Come on, we've saved you a seat." Before Etaine could say anything, Belle was half dragging her up to the front. Waiting with DropOff was what should could only guess would be the rest of the team. She recognized Teke by his constantly blue hair. Like her chrome fore arm, Teke would always have blue hair. Next to him was Ebon Phoenix, owner of the Wayside Cathedral and a man who loved black, as evidenced by his clothing and long black trenchcoat. The remaining member of the party was also dressed in black, but was female. Etaine did not recognize her, but the woman approached and held out her hand.  
"Novice Kharma bani Euthanatos," she said formally.  
"Apprentice Etaine MacCul bani Order of Hermes," Etaine replied. She was beginning to wonder what good she could do to this Bio Forge attack, they had two assassin Mages already, and the Virtual Adepts could get into anywhere what good could she do?  
"Oh," Kharma said, as if recognizing her name as the same of a poisonous serpent. "I've heard of you. The zombie killer."  
"I guess that's one thing to call me, I prefer Etaine, or Tana if that's easier for you." Belle stepped in.  
"Let's just sit down, all right?" Obediently, Etaine sat down, not looking at Kharma. The two women were probably the same age, but there would be no partnership, Etaine could already tell.  
Unlike many of the mages sitting around her, Etaine was the only one unaware of her reputation. Most mages had, at first, shrugged her off as another stuck-up Hermetic, but after the zombie raid on Springfield, some had begun to look at her a little differently. Some feared her, particularly since the Hermetic Order confirmed she spent more time studying Garou and Leeches then divination and spells. Others revered her in a small way; she very nearly shunned the Order and yet had proven herself time and again to be a cool headed woman in a fire fight. Not to mention fire was her favorite toy and she was good at manipulating it. A small group, mostly of her own Tradition, hated her. These few Etaine was not unaware of, since they were normally the ones that bothered her more often. Finally, there were those Mages in Springfield she dared to call "friends". These few knew that Etaine was a broken hearted woman who was still bitter that her Tradition could be so negligent as to ignore dangerous spells. They knew she had a sweet side, but the critic in her made her cold. It did not help she had an unrequited love.  
The tribune began with the standard greeting to all new mages of Springfield, followed by a report on the actions of P.R.I.S.M, the Technocrat stronghold, and then Master Stone bani Order of Hermes, leader of the tribunal (and Etaine's Tradtion) made an announcement.  
"Adept DropOff bani Virtual Adepts has announced that his cabal is ready and will be leaving within the week to Germany to launch an attack on BioForge. BioForge, as many of you know, is suspected to be held by Progenitors. DropOff and his Cabal are off to destroy it. We wish you luck, DropOff, Teke, Belle, Ebon Phoenix, Kharma, and Etaine." There was a minuscule round of applause before the Tribunal was called to an end. Etaine made to leave, but was cut off as a spunky brunette bounced past her to DropOff. The Hermetic rolled her eyes as DropOff's newest toy came into focus; Katrina could exhaust a cheerleader on speed.  
"Are you really going?" Katrina pouted to DropOff.  
"Yes, I told you I was weeks ago. You'll be fine."  
"Why can't I go with you?" She whined. Etaine had heard enough. She turned to leave before someone grabbed her by the arm.  
"I can't believe you're going!" the voice was a familiar one and Etaine relaxed. Annie, a Cultist of Ecstasy, was one of the few Etaine called a friend. Annie was normally the only on that would convince Etaine to go to the Wayside to be social, and was probably the only one who cared enough to invite her along. The scholar turned to face the plain looking Annie.  
"Well I never actually agreed, but you know Belle and DropOff. What are you up to?"  
"Oh, I was just waiting for the party to get started. You look really cute like that, with the mini skirt and the knee high boots. If only that agent could see you now!" Annie laughed and Etaine blushed.  
"Let's not talk about him, all right. You were right, he got killed that night and he probably wouldn't have if I'd waited."  
"You know for sure?" Annie asked, beginning to steer Etaine towards the bar.  
"No, but I would have thought by now he would have contacted me so he's either dead, or didn't care about me like you all thought. Can we talk about something else?"  
"Of course, honey," Annie said in her rather charming way. "Let me get you a drink and we'll catch up a bit, huh?" Glancing back at the others, most were getting ready to enjoy the night club. DropOff was explaining to Katrina why she would not be coming along, and Katrina was pouting too much to really listen.  
"To the bar," Etaine said.  
"It's simple really, I'd prefer for you to keep your stamina ready for when I get back." DropOff's demeanor remained unchanged by the pouty look that he was receiving. He had seen better then the Verbana's quivering lip.  
"But, you know that I'd be a great person to have along," Katrina said, stepping in a little too close "if you ever have to dive for cover." Her pout still fixed on her face but the sound of her voice being as seductive as it could be. Her fingers trailed up his arm to his shoulders.  
"Personally Kat," DropOff said turning his attentions toward the auburn haired Etaine whom was walking toward the bar. He took in her mini skirt, the fitting form of her shirt, and of course the auburn hair. DropOff remembered a rumor or two about redheads. "I believe in surviving to screw the prom queen after the game. not getting killed in the process." His gaze turned back to her, as if remembering suddenly he was not speaking to the woman he was looking at. He was just in time to see her eyebrows furrow downward in what seemed more confusion then anger. Her entire demeanor had changed, obviously because of his half unconscious head movements. She stood there looking at him, as ferocious as a twitching bunny. "What?!" he asked, holding out his hands and gesturing wide in feigned confusion.  
"How did you know I was the prom queen?" Katrina asked.  
  
Etaine sighed as she got back to her apartment, greeted immediately by a rather angry meow. A white cat approached her, his tail twitching.  
"Oh, Setanta, sorry." Etaine said, heading to the kitchen to pour her cat a bowl of Cat Chow. Unlike some mages, Etaine did not keep a familiar. Setanta was simply a cat, albeit one that was too smart for his own good. Thrice he had interrupted an experiment of Etaine's by destroying something in the apartment. Still, Setanta was a friendly cat, which was more than Etaine wanted out of a pet. She went to change into a silk night shirt. There were three messages from Marcus, a fellow teacher, and the head of the department, at the college that seemed to think Etaine returned his crush. She would go out to eat with Marcus at times, but she was not serious about him. The phone rang as she returned to the entry.  
"Hello?" Etaine said. Only a fellow Mage would call her this late at night. There was silence on the other end. "Hello?" when only silence responded, she hung up. Almost immediately the phone rang. She grabbed the receiver. "I gave you two chances!" she snapped.  
"What are you talking about, Etaine?" DropOff responded.  
"Sorry DropOff, I just got prank called or something. Wait, you know how to use something as primary as a phone?"  
"Ha.Ha," he responded. "Let me in, I want to talk to you." Etaine hung up and opened that door, not surprised to find him there.  
"I already agreed to go, DropOff." Etaine sat on her tawny suede couch. DropOff sat across from her, pausing only when Setanta hissed at him.  
"Nice cat," he said sarcastically. "Look, I wanted to thank you for agreeing to come with me. And I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you in the first place."  
"He is observant isn't he, Setanta?" Etaine asked as the cat jumped up next to her.  
"To be honest, I wouldn't have asked you, but-"  
"I know, Teke and Belle insisted."  
"No, they suggested you. I needed someone who can take the lead when I can't. I know you've got a cold exterior, but I also know that you can lead. Hell, I know that you're the one that figured out the zombie thing."  
"So I'm the second in command, basically?"  
"To put it bluntly, yes. You're all right with that?"  
"I have to be, don't I?" DropOff sighed, as if he knew she would be difficult.  
"No, you don't have to be, but I just came to say thank you."  
"You're welcome. It will give me an excuse to see Europe again."  
"So it's true that you spent eight years in Ireland?"  
"I got my PhD there. I was sent here because I was born in California so my mentor thought it would be a good idea for me to return to the states. I meant to go back, but I've stayed for some reason." Because I'm looking for someone, she thought as she completed her statement. DropOff paused.  
"Can I ask a personal question?"  
"Go ahead."  
"I heard from Belle and Teke that you guys teamed up with an agent. Do you remember who it was?" Etaine stopped petting Setanta for a moment.  
"Who can tell the difference between those hive minded bastards?" she replied stoically. DropOff looked like he flinched slightly, as if she had hit a nerve.  
"It might be important. Please?"  
"He called himself Jynx. But he's dead."  
"Dead?" DropOff sounded pleased and a smile crossed his face.  
"Yes. See, after I realized what we needed to do, and that the Technocracy wasn't involved, I told Jynx he could leave. Instead of waiting for him, I left him among zombies."  
"So why would you assume he's dead?"  
"You're entering into really personal territory, DropOff."  
"I warned you it was a personal question." Etaine sighed and looked at the oriental carpet.  
"Because I was beginning to really like him and I've never been very good with the dating scene, so I was hoping to hold on to him. I thought he liked me too, I mean he didn't give me any reason to think he didn't. I thought that if he had lived, he would have let me know somehow. He didn't, or hasn't, so I've just assumed he's dead." Etaine glanced at him. "You can laugh at me for having a crush on a Man in Black."  
"No. It happens." DropOff replied softly. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else."  
"I appreciate that," Etaine yawned.  
"I'll let you sleep. Remember, one week until destruction." His voice seemed to place a particular enthusiasm on the word, as if it was perhaps the most delightful thing he could ever think of. For him to be so excited about a simple smash job was odd, as DropOff did them all the time. Etaine nodded, standing to show him out. Once he was gone, she locked the door and headed to her bedroom, slipping under the sheets with a sigh.  
"You best keep mum about that too, Setanta." Etaine commented before drifting to sleep.  
  
"And so, ladies and gentlemen," Etaine said to her class. "The mythology of the Greeks reflected their civilization." She glanced at the time on the computer. "And that's all for now. I know this will upset many of you, but I have been called to help with a study in Germany so class will not be in session for at least the next two weeks. E-mail your reports on Zeus and his many lovers to me; I will be able to get them. Thank you." As her students left, Etaine began gathering her disks and the book she used.  
"Professor," a voice purred. Etaine glanced up to see Kharma standing in front of her.  
"May I help you?" The Euthanatos handed her an envelope.  
"DropOff said to have this sent to you." Etaine took it and opened it and found two plane tickets.  
"So we're taking a plane?"  
"DropOff isn't powerful enough to transport us all, Professor. Just meet us at the gate." With that, Kharma turned and left the room.  
"Well, good to know I've made a friend." Etaine purred venomously to herself. For a moment Etaine wished she had the nerve to go to speak to DropOff, talk to him a little bit more than she had last night. That ridiculous, of course, DropOff barely knew her and was probably busy with Katrina, or hacking Reality, or any number of things. Still, there was something eerily familiar about him. She had met him only a few days after the zombie incident and she had felt it ever since. There was something about DropOff she felt close to. It was especially strong when he took off his glasses, and she got the chance to look into his eyes. Something struck her every time. It felt like a crush, but it was different, somehow.  
Etaine shrugged the thoughts off and went to her office to finish her work and wait for students to come and ask her questions. She wasn't expecting anyone. Mythology, after all, was a rather straight forward science and it did not take much to understand the myths and the effects on society. She glanced at a branch of candles that she kept on her desk. Strictly speaking, she was not supposed to have those in here, but then again when the head of the department had taken an interest in her. She smiled to herself and pointed a finger at the candles on the branch, her lips moving. 


	4. Flames of the Heart

The candle sparked to life right in front of Rue as Dr. Yuni lit it. Rue's jaw clenched. She would not allow herself to panic or shrink away from the candles. Dr. Yuni looked at her evenly.  
"How do you feel right now?"  
"I feel like I want to blow those candles out."  
"Why? Both the table and the candle holders are solid. The only way to knock the candle over is to touch it, and I promise you I will not."  
"Things burn. Clothes, hair, skin." Rue only faintly understood she was barely speaking English.  
"Yes, they burn, but those candles will not be enough to get to you hurt. Do you trust me, Rue?"  
"As much as any technocrat trusts another."  
In the eyes of Dr. Yuni this was only a neutral answer. Yes the ivory tower was a pillar of strength but its interior was plagued by cracks. In the field one had to be careful that their fellow associate's directors didn't have a vendetta against the one that you were dutifully engaged with- you could find yourself relieved of the habit of living.  
"I can promise you, Rue, I will not turn you into a drone. I've looked at your work, it's amazing. You have a valuable mind in there and I would not take that away. Look at me, not the candles." Rue obeyed, looking at the other woman with a look like a fawn before a hungry wolf. "I want you to keep talking to me, Rue. Forget the candles, just look at me. Keep talking to me; think of it as a candlelit dinner."  
"Never really had one of those," Rue admitted. Dr. Yuni raised a brow.  
"A lovely woman like yourself not taken out for a candlelit dinner? What kind of men did you date?"  
"The wrong kind, every time."  
"I know what you mean," Yuni said. Rue realized that talking over the candles was calming. She relaxed slightly into the couch. "But I'm sure that's all changed now, with you the only female in Jynx's team. That must be nice."  
"I like the work well enough," Rue admitted. "But I think Jynx was trying to hit on me yesterday."  
"That's not surprising. He's never been very good with women, but it's sweet to watch him try."  
"I've heard that he fell in love with a reality deviant."  
"So have I. It's possible, but he does his work and he does it without complaint so I don't worry about it, and neither does anyone else I guess since he's never been sent here. Rue, I want you to keep talking, but don't watch me. Keep talking to me, but don't look away from where you are now." Dr. Yuni stood and Rue simply did as she was told.  
"I don't know how much I should tell you. I know you are supposed to report to Jynx."  
"On your progress only, but on what you actually say. Tell me what is on your mind, Rue." Dr. Yuni lit a match and lit two more candles. There were now four in the room, two in front of Rue, and two behind her. The agent recognized immediately what was happening, but faced forward.  
"Lexx and I are having a secret relationship, which makes working with Jynx easier."  
"Lexx?" Dr. Yuni said calmly. "Oh yes, the agent I spoke to first. He is handsome, congratulations."  
"I don't know if you should congratulate me. He's been pushing ideas like weekend holidays, and me waiting for him to come home, and.and commitment!"  
"This another fear of yours?" Yuni watched Rue carefully as she lit more candles. She seemed just fine so long as she was kept talking and focused. Perhaps the fear would be remedied quickly.  
"I'm just not ready for it, that's all. Besides, Jynx doesn't like the idea of inter-office relationships. And, and well Lexx has gotten odd recently."  
"How so?"  
"His temper has gotten worse. He throws fits more randomly, but then will be all tenderness and sweetness the next minute. Just last night he got upset when Jynx walked me home to give me a file on our next mission. He accused me of cheating on him with Jynx when he knows that I have no interest in Jynx what-so-ever! When we started it was just about keeping each other warm, and helping me find my way around P.R.E. Now it's all about taking me to the coast, and telling me to wait at home for him like I'm some kind of dog! My mother was like that and she and I never got along. She wanted me to go to college to get married, and I wanted to go to get a masters. Once my tuition was paid, I stopped talking to her altogether, and then I joined the Technocracy."  
"Where did you grow up?"  
"That's an odd question, isn't it?"  
"How so?" Yuni continued to light candles. There were almost sixteen candles lit now and Rue did not even seem to notice.  
"I thought we were not supposed to discuss our old lives."  
"That's true to a certain extent, but really it's more you're not supposed to re-visit your old life, it's all right to talk about it."  
"I grew up in Boston. I was six years old when my brother was born, and ten when he was killed. My parents went to therapy for his death, but it was assumed it was too traumatic for me and I would forget about it. They were so wrong. I mean my friends never guessed I was scared of fire through out all of school. It didn't really effect me, except after my mom cooked and I would always check the stove to make sure she had turned it off. A few of my friends in college smoked, but assumed that because I didn't, that was why I asked them to smoke outside. They were fine with it.  
"When I went to college, I did well, as was expected. I meant to go for pre-Engineering since I had always enjoyed logic. But I changed my mind when I took a military history class in ROTC. I loved the way that generals of the past had figured out the most effective use of weapons and strengths and weaknesses. I changed my major after the third class to history with an emphasis on combat. I've never looked back. I was supposed to join the army, but when they found out that fire made me nervous, they said it was a bad idea. So I finished my masters and then joined here. I dated a lot, but nothing ever serious."  
"Rue," Dr. Yuni spoke softly. "I want you to look around the room." By now, Dr. Yuni had lit almost thirty candles. Rue sighed and looked around obediently.  
"When did you light all of these?" she asked, her throat going dry.  
"While you were talking. How do you feel?"  
"I'm getting more and more nervous now that I see them."  
"I thought so. Well I have good news, I don't think we'll need to do this again."  
"Really?" It was the best news Rue had heard all week.  
"Really." Dr. Yuni took her seat again. "Your problem is not really with fire, it's with control, you're merely projecting that fear onto something. You remember that you could not stop the fire from harming someone you cared about. Your frustration with Lexx is another example. You can't control it like you can control plans to invade forts or plants. If you're not in control, you get nervous. That's a whole different set of issues."  
"So I'm a control freak?" Rue said simply. Dr. Yuni actually smiled.  
"I would not put it that coldly, but you do have this need to be in control. Using this knowledge will help you with the fire wariness. Rue, I want you to get a lighter."  
"A lighter?"  
"Yes. A lighter is a way that man has learned to control fire. Once you learn that fire can be controlled, the more comfortable with it you'll be. All I want you to do is to play with the lighter. Do it during your off time, before you go to bed, or while you're alone. Still come to talk to me once a week, I think this will work, but perhaps there is something I missed. You're free to go. I will tell Jynx why you suddenly have a lighter, but nothing else."  
"Actually, Dr. Yuni, I was wondering if you could help me. Jynx does not feel that I should be on this latest misson because of my fear. Would you tell him that it is all right for me to go?" Dr. Yuni tapped her lips with her pen.  
"I will tell him that it would not be damaging for you to be on the mission, but ultimately it is his choice to let you on or not."  
"Thanks," Rue said and left the candle filled room. She realized as she rushed to into the main building that she was not shaking, or sweating, or showing any other sign of fear. The only thing she looked like, she realized, is a New World Order agent rushing to a meeting with her director- which was exactly what she was.  
Jynx was alone in his office when she entered. He smiled to her as she came in. Rue smiled back softly and adjusted her black blazer.  
"I'm sorry for being late," she started before Jynx stopped her.  
"It's all right, you're not anyway."  
"Oh good. Actually, I was hoping to talk to you. When I was going through the file last night, I came across a page that seemed to be missing."  
"Missing?" Rue opened the file and handed him the seemingly random page.  
"There's no first page, no profile, not even a picture." Jynx tucked the page into his desk and cleared his throat.  
"Clerical mistake." He said rather unconvincingly. Rue raised a brow and opened her mouth to question him further, but the door opened as Agent Marshal Augustis entered. He nodded to Jynx and Rue before taking a seat on the couch. Augustis was the oldest member of the team: his brown hair was balding on top, forming a horse shoe pattern. His face was etched with frown lines and crow's feet and it seemed as if he was permanently sucking on something sour. Lexx and Wulf entered not too long afterwards. Wulf winked and formed a gun from his hand to Rue as he sat on the love seat. Lexx did not even seem to recognize director or agent as he sat beside Augustis. Jynx left his desk and sat with Wulf. A tap on top of Jynx's desk displayed blue prints of what could have been an office building.  
"Gentlemen," Rue began. "What you're looking at is the blue prints of BioForge's head. This location, set in the middle of Berlin, is the birthing place of all other BioForge buildings. From here BioForge runs all its administrative duties, as well as the standard operations for BioForge, which is largely Progenitor run, as you all well know. Due to some clever paper trails and red tape, compliments of the Syndicate, most Deviants would not be able to locate that this is the perfect position to plan a terrorist attack. The fact that we are looking at it, of course, means that a few have."  
Rue tapped the top of the desk again and the slide moved to display a man with spiked red hair, cherry red sunglasses, dressed in parachute pants and red suspenders. "This is the suspected leader. His name is DropOff and his record is impressive. He was the dread of P.R.I.S.M, our stronghold in his home town of Springfield. The least of his antics include the burning, twice, of Springfield."  
The agent tapped the desk again and a woman with ebony hair and dark brown eyes dressed in tight fitting black pants and a black tank top. "This is Belle Flower, assassin extraordinaire. She is most likely to be second in command of this outfit. Her killing record is notable and she has been careful to stay off our radar so there is not much known about her."  
Another tap and the screen showed another woman, this one a blond dressed in a black skirt and tube top under a trench coat. "This is Kharma, she is probably Belle's protégée. Her record of direct killing isn't impressive, but she was probably the practical joke queen of her high school with all the 'accidents' that happen to the agents which run into her."  
She tapped the desk again and the slide moved to show a blue haired man in black leather with blue flames at the bottom of the pants and trench coat. "This is Teke, a friend of DropOff's. His record of trouble making spans the globe, although he is not as much of a bane as DropOff. Teke's father is the leader of the Syndicate in Springfield." A final click showed a man in full black. "This is Ebon Phoenix. He helped burn Springfield to the ground, and has been a bane to P.R.I.S.M.  
"So there you have it, gentleman. These five R.D.'s are planning on attacking BioForge within the week from what we have found."  
"How do we know the time?" Wulf asked.  
"It seems that two Virtual Adepts isn't enough to get everyone over to Germany. They are flying by plane. I have already taken the liberty of locating the gate and time."  
"If this place is run by Progenitors, why are they asking for help?" Lexx asked.  
"They aren't, but there are flaws in the security that would allow for clever Deviants to get in and trash the place." Rue tapped the desk again, returning to the blue print screen. "To begin with, the guards at the door are human. It would do to change them to Go-bots, or even Void Engineers. Additionally there has not been much in the way of interior cameras. Of course, this is supposed to be just an office building so there isn't much need for security. A few outdoor cameras that are turned on when the building closes, and a few interior cameras incase there is a problem. The interior cameras are only in the lobby though. I could crack into this place when I was ten, these five will have little trouble. That's if they are planning on even really attacking at all."  
"What do you mean?" Jynx asked.  
"I mean that BioForge, like P.R.E actually took time to add in landscaping. The front would burn easily, providing the perfect distraction to allow the five of them to get in. As you can see, the ways in are multiple, especially when dealing with R.D.'s as dangerous as this."  
"Suggestions for actions?" Augustis asked calmly.  
"Debatable. We could leave tomorrow and be ready for the five to appear, but that would give them time to realize we are on to them. Another option is simply warning BioForge about the attack. It will be hard for them to believe, but if they follow standards, they'll beef up security a little. The final option is head them off at the airport. This would be the most beneficial, in my opinion since we know where they are headed, and when. We could get there plenty of time in advance and catch them."  
"That would risk exposing them to the masses," Augustis pointed out.  
"True," Rue agreed, turning off the projector and turning on the lights. "However, it would be the easiest way of apprehending them without a sack and sweep of Springfield. These R.D.'s are dangerous, a public humiliation could be just what they need to realize they are an insult."  
"Besides," Wulf put in calmly, his eyes closed. "If they try anything on us, reality will do our work for us." No one argued with him. Wulf had worked with the team well enough that any thoughts of treachery had been erased. He had yet to fail to provide information that had been live saving.  
"Perhaps we should warn BioForge anyway? Just in case?" Lexx offered. Jynx nodded,  
"It will at least warn them we are coming. This would also avoid the nasty need to involve Control." Everyone in the room flinched. Control was the ultimate Director, deciding which Technocrat would live, and which would die. Jynx's hope to avoid the involvement of Control was pointless, but if the team was quiet about it, Control would not feel the need to involve itself. "Is there anything else, Agent?"  
"Not unless you want the time and gate information now, but that's subject to change. Front Line airports are skittish recently."  
"Then just keep an eye on it, and let us know if you can think of any other ways to head off the R.D.'s. I came from Springfield, all of these deviants deserve watching. Dismissed." Jynx stood and went back to his desk as he spoke. Rue took her time removing the miniature compact disk and organizing her file.  
"Hungry, Rue?" Lexx asked as he approached.  
"Not particularly, Agent Lexx, but thank you for asking." She turned her back to him and listened as he walked away. He would be hurt that she did not eat with him, but there were more important things to discuss with Jynx. At last it was only the director and the agent.  
"Did you want to talk, Melonie?" the hopefulness in Jynx's voic was undeniable. "You have not spoken to me since last week. I was worried I had offended you in some fashion."  
"No, Greg, you didn't offend me. I was hoping to discuss something with you. I had an appointment with Dr. Yuni just before this meeting. She told me that my problem is not so much that I fear fire, but that I have the urge to control."  
"You would not be one of the top agents in your field if you did not," Jynx replied.  
"Regardless, she has asked me to purchase a lighter, since that is a way to control fire and agreed that it would be all right for me to attend the mission." Rue held her breath as she watched her director. Dr. Yuni could say what she wished, but the decision would ultimately be Jynx's.  
"Melonie, I'm trying to watch out for your safety," he said, leaning forward on the desk.  
"And what about the team's safety? Say there is a security feature that I assumed would be there, and it isn't? What if there's a last minute decision that must be made? You're having me hold all the information, but you're risking me not even being there to give you updates!" she had not meant to get so passionate about going, but she could not resist. Jynx ran his fingers through his hair and sighed again.  
"Melonie."  
"Greg, please. My problem is the need for control and without being with the team, I will feel like I have none. Now, you can risk me freezing up when fire starts but know that all angles will be covered, or you can keep me cooped up in P.R.E and run the potential of me being out of the loop. Which would you rather have?" Her brow raised questioningly and their eyes met for a moment.  
"I understand, Melonie, truly, I do. All right," Jynx threw his hands out as if giving up. "All right, you'll come with us. I'll add your name to the roster so my directors know." Rue smiled as sweetly as she could.  
"Truly? Oh thank you, Greg. You won't regret this, I promise."  
"I hope not. If there's nothing else, you may go." With a second smile, Rue left, her spirits lifted  
Click.  
Lexx looked over to Rue as she sat cross legged in only her underwear on his bed. With a flick of her wrist she turned her new silver lighter on and off, letting the flame glow for a moment before closing it again.  
Click.  
"How long are you going to play with that thing?" He asked with an edge in his voice.  
Click.  
"Until I can hold the flame for more then thirty seconds without getting worried," she replied casually.  
Click.  
"Do you have to do it now?" He asked, crawling towards her on the opened futon.  
Click.  
"The sooner I get used to it, the better this next mission will be for all of us. I got Jynx to let me go, I have to make sure that I don't make him look bad."  
Click.  
Lexx snatched the closed lighter from her hand, "But it's annoying, my love, and there are other things that wouldn't mind being controlled by you."  
"Simon!" she protested, reaching for the lighter which Lexx kept well out of her reach. "Come on, if I learn to be all right with this, then my dreams might stop haunting me."  
"If I don't let you sleep, you can't dream now can you?" Lexx tossed the lighter aside and grabbed Rue, pinning her down. "Kiss me, Melonie," He demanded in a way that was almost playfully.  
"Simon, let me go, you know I don't like this!"  
"Kiss me and I'll let you go," he countered. Rue made the mistake of looking into his eyes. There was an animalistic quality that chilled her insides as if she had swallowed liquid nitrogen. He looked as likely to kiss her as he was to kill her.  
"Lexx," she pleaded in a whisper. "Stop this! Let me go!"  
"Why?" he hissed, leaning closer to her. "Why should I do what you or anyone else asks of me?"  
"This is crazy! Let me go!" Rue twisted her wrists to try and escape. Lexx growled and squeezed hard enough for her to hear her wrists pop threatening, as if they were on the verge of breaking. Jynx's words came back to her suddenly "I would have to suggest caution on your part with Lexx".  
"Why?" He demanded again. "Why should you or I have to take orders? Why don't we leave, together, just you and me? We'll take our shades and take a car and we'll leave."  
"Simon!" Rue shrieked before latching onto his lips with her teeth and pulling. Lexx screamed and shoved away from her. Rue released him, licking blood away from her lips as she got to her feet  
"You bitch!" Lexx screamed and backhanded Rue viciously, sending her sprawling to the floor. She looked back as Lexx wiped blood from his mouth. He glared at her imperiously from the futon. Part of Rue told her that Lexx was done with his attack, even with the malicious, vengeful gaze that bore into her chest. She got to her feet and pulled on her long blazer which covered her half way to her knees. Without looking back she grabbing her pants and her lighter before running out, slamming the door behind her.  
The agent hurried back to her own room, swallowing back sobs until she was safely behind her own locked and bolted door. Hurriedly, Rue closed the blinds that hung by the window slits, she knew perfectly well that no one would be able to look into her room, and that she had no real reason to close the blinds, but before she could think about it, the room was sealed off from the eyes of the world. The agent felt herself curl into a ball inside, somewhere just below her heart.  
She hated Lexx, but she loved him, and without him there were thousand of predators just outside her room that would take her out. She would not have the strength or will to out run them, and no one would be there to rescue her because the only person she could trust to had, if even for a moment, become a predator himself. In the back of her mind, Rue heard a tiny, mocking voice which seemed to always tell the truth. This time it told her that she would go back to Lexx, even after he had struck her, and that she would always keep coming back to him again and again and again. She had no one else to turn to, the world was too big, too scary, for her to ever survive alone in, the voice told her.  
Her sobs fought with her body's demand to breath and the salt from the tears burned against her bruise. Her wrists' throbbed and she could hardly flex her fingers. Tears blurred her eyesight as she stumbled into her kitchen. With a loud sob that sounded as if she had been stabbed, she plunged her hands into the ice tray. Her cheek throbbed with her heartbeat and the cold air of the freezer felt so cold, it burned her.  
Once she could not feel either of her hands, and most of her tears had dried, Rue stumbled away from the freezer and into the bathroom to look at her cheek. Already the bruise was turning purple, with green on the edges. Clever make-up and hair would, perhaps, keep anyone from noticing before it healed, but only if she was very careful. Her eyes puffy, crimson, and sore from her tears, Rue stumbled into bed. She collapsed on the pillows and clutched one as if it would guard her from the monster in the closet.  
"Only the monster isn't in the closet," she said aloud. "The monster is five doors down the hallway!" 


End file.
